After nine years of publishing RMB rankings, we are pleased and surprised by
the extent of improvement in countries that are not necessarily perceived as strong investment
destinations. Guinea, Mozambique and Djibouti recorded the strongest gains, with notable
advancements in certain aspects of their operating environments. The rankings are as instructive
on the downside, identifying countries that have either stagnated or outright deteriorated in
one or all aspects of our methodology. South Africa, Ethiopia and Tanzania are among the
more prominent countries to have moved downward. A deterioration in the ease of doing
business has contributed to their relative underperformance, and South Africa is also enduring
a cyclical downturn. Tanzania’s fall from grace has shuffled the top ten investment destinations,
with Tunisia returning to the fold at number ten while Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana edge close
to the top five. North Africa remains dominant, with Morocco displacing South Africa in the
rankings, placing second to Egypt. Aspects like simplifying the process of registering a business,
improving electronic submissions and processing of export documents, as well as increasing the
efficiency of the customs service have helped Morocco move into second place.
As favourable Factors:
Morocco is Africa’s fifth-largest market, with an expected growth rate of 4% over the medium term. A greatly-enhanced operating environment has served Morocco well since the Arab Spring.
Its reintegration into the African Union (AU) and accession to the Economic Community of West African States
(ECOWAS) have enhanced its investment appeal.
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